People who bought this also bought...

Bill O'Reilly's Legends and Lies: The Patriots

The must-have companion to Bill O'Reilly's historical docudrama Legends and Lies: The Patriots, an exciting and eye-opening look at the Revolutionary War through the lives of its leaders....

Couldn't stop listening!

By
Erin
on
08-05-16

The Last Days of Jesus

His Life and Times

By:
Bill O'Reilly

Narrated by:
Edward Herrmann

Length: 4 hrs and 4 mins

Unabridged

Overall

154

Performance

131

Story

135

Packed with fascinating details, this fast-paced narrative will transport listeners back in time....

I should have read the small print.

By
Nathan North
on
04-30-14

Understanding Trump

By:
Newt Gingrich,
Eric Trump - foreword

Narrated by:
Newt Gingrich,
Eric Trump

Length: 11 hrs and 43 mins

Unabridged

Overall

540

Performance

486

Story

486

The presidency of Donald Trump marks a profound change in the trajectory of American government, politics, and culture....

disappointed

By
Brenda Hughes
on
07-11-17

Pinheads and Patriots

Where You Stand in the Age of Obama

By:
Bill O'Reilly

Narrated by:
Bill O'Reilly

Length: 5 hrs and 37 mins

Unabridged

Overall

592

Performance

318

Story

321

In his latest spirited book, O'Reilly prompts further debate with the president and the American people on the current state of the union.....

Entering the No-Spin Zon

By
Jennifer
on
12-08-12

The Big Lie

Exposing the Nazi Roots of the American Left

By:
Dinesh D'Souza

Narrated by:
David Cochran Heath

Length: 9 hrs and 30 mins

Unabridged

Overall

1,187

Performance

1,078

Story

1,067

What is "the big lie" of the Democratic Party? That conservatives - and President Donald Trump in particular - are fascists. Nazis, even....

Historical

By
L. Africano
on
09-16-17

Andrew Jackson and the Miracle of New Orleans

The Battle That Shaped America's Destiny

By:
Brian Kilmeade,
Don Yaeger

Narrated by:
Brian Kilmeade

Length: 5 hrs and 45 mins

Unabridged

Overall

177

Performance

160

Story

158

When the British fought the young United States during the War of 1812, they knew that taking the mouth of the Mississippi River was the key to crippling their former colony....

A lot of detailed information regarding the War

By
Ronald Farris
on
10-25-17

The Swamp

Washington's Murky Pool of Corruption and Cronyism - and How Trump Can Drain It

By:
Eric Bolling

Narrated by:
Eric Bolling

Length: 5 hrs and 58 mins

Unabridged

Overall

183

Performance

165

Story

163

When Washington, DC, was first built, it was on top of a swamp that had to be drained. Donald Trump says it's time to drain it again....

Loved it and enjoyed hearing it in Eric's voice

By
Debra Gravelle
on
07-24-17

Billionaire at the Barricades

The Populist Revolution from Reagan to Trump

By:
Laura Ingraham

Narrated by:
Laura Ingraham

Length: 10 hrs and 18 mins

Unabridged

Overall

252

Performance

239

Story

240

Americans didn’t just go to the polls in 2016. They joined a movement that swept the unlikeliest of candidates, Donald Trump, into the Oval Office. Can he complete his agenda....

The unlikelist US president!

By
Wayne
on
11-15-17

The Day the World Went Nuclear

Dropping the Atom Bomb and the End of World War II in the Pacific

By:
Bill O'Reilly

Narrated by:
Robert Petkoff

Length: 4 hrs and 58 mins

Unabridged

Overall

91

Performance

78

Story

78

Autumn 1944. World War II is nearly over in Europe, but in the Pacific, American soldiers face an enemy who will not surrender....

The Reader's Digest Version

By
Rae
on
08-20-17

Mere Christianity

By:
C.S. Lewis

Narrated by:
Julian Rhind-Tutt

Length: 7 hrs and 6 mins

Unabridged

Overall

4,003

Performance

3,482

Story

3,463

One of the most popular and beloved introductions to the concept of faith ever written, Mere Christianity has sold millions of copies worldwide....

Mere Christianity, complex ideas in simple terms

By
Linda M.
on
01-30-15

Case for Christ, Revised & Updated

A Journalist's Personal Investigation of the Evidence for Jesus

By:
Lee Strobel

Narrated by:
Lee Strobel

Length: 10 hrs and 55 mins

Unabridged

Overall

821

Performance

737

Story

739

Is there credible evidence that Jesus of Nazareth really is the son of God? Retracing his own spiritual journey from atheism to faith, Lee Strobel cross-examines a dozen experts....

It takes too much faith to be an atheist

By
Joseph G King
on
05-09-17

Vengeance

By:
Newt Gingrich,
Pete Earley

Narrated by:
Eric Martin

Length: 13 hrs and 55 mins

Unabridged

Overall

126

Performance

119

Story

118

A terrorist drives an explosive-packed rental truck into Major Brooke Grant's Washington, DC wedding, intending to detonate a deadly bomb....

Timely!

By
GmaLynn
on
10-17-17

Old School

Life in the Sane Lane

By:
Bill O'Reilly,
Bruce Feirstein

Narrated by:
Holter Graham

Length: 4 hrs and 23 mins

Unabridged

Overall

809

Performance

731

Story

726

You have probably heard the term Old School, but what you might not know is that there is a concentrated effort to tear that school down....

Good stuff for life.

By
Amazon Customer
on
04-12-17

The Paradigm

The Ancient Blueprint That Holds the Mystery of Our Times

By:
Jonathan Cahn

Narrated by:
Paul Michael

Length: 9 hrs and 21 mins

Unabridged

Overall

110

Performance

103

Story

102

The Paradigm will reveal secrets and mysteries taking place all around you and show you what you never could have imagined....

Excellent

By
jww1977
on
11-23-17

The Smear

How Shady Political Operatives and Fake News Control What You See, What You Think, and How You Vote

By:
Sharyl Attkisson

Narrated by:
Sharyl Attkisson

Length: 11 hrs and 19 mins

Unabridged

Overall

419

Performance

390

Story

389

The New York Times best-selling author of Stonewalled pulls back the curtain on the shady world of opposition research and reveals the dirty tricks those in power use to influence your opinions....

Devestating Reporting on...Reporters and The Smear

By
Charles Atkinson
on
06-29-17

Thomas Jefferson and the Tripoli Pirates

The Forgotten War That Changed American History

By:
Brian Kilmeade,
Don Yaeger

Narrated by:
Brian Kilmeade

Length: 4 hrs and 52 mins

Unabridged

Overall

1,673

Performance

1,537

Story

1,527

This is the little-known story of how a newly independent nation was challenged by four Muslim powers and what happened when America's third president decided to stand up....

Interesting history - terrible narrator

By
School Nurse Cindy
on
12-08-15

The American Miracle

Divine Providence in the Rise of the Republic

By:
Michael Medved

Narrated by:
Michael Medved

Length: 15 hrs and 22 mins

Unabridged

Overall

258

Performance

226

Story

226

In The American Miracle, Michael Medved recounts some of the most significant events in America's rise to prosperity and power, from the writing of the Constitution to the Civil War....

great book

By
THOMAS R ALESSI
on
01-01-17

Clinton Cash

The Untold Story of How and Why Foreign Governments and Businesses Helped Make Bill and Hillary Rich

By:
Peter Schweizer

Narrated by:
Walter Dixon

Length: 5 hrs and 25 mins

Unabridged

Overall

1,022

Performance

916

Story

914

In Clinton Cash he follows the Clinton money trail, revealing the connection between their personal fortune....

Awesome

By
Susan
on
05-24-15

Publisher's Summary

Millions of people have thrilled to best-selling authors Bill O'Reilly and historian Martin Dugard's Killing Kennedy and Killing Lincoln, works of nonfiction that have changed the way we view history. Now the anchor of The O'Reilly Factor details the events leading up to the murder of the most influential man in history: Jesus of Nazareth. Nearly 2,000 years after this beloved and controversial young revolutionary was brutally killed by Roman soldiers, more than 2.2 billion human beings attempt to follow his teachings and believe he is God. Killing Jesus will take listeners inside Jesus' life, recounting the seismic political and historical events that made his death inevitable and changed the world forever.

Story

The Jesus story in context

Where does Killing Jesus rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

If you are searching for a different take on the Jesus story... You won't find it here. (While NOT a religious book, the book follows the gospels.) Where it excels, is placing the events in historical and cultural context. By freeing the main character (Jesus) from the restraints of strictly gospel and putting him amid the political chaos, cultures, and religious traditions of the time; the story of Jesus simultaneously become more complex and yet amazingly simple. Most Christians are aware of the life and death of Jesus. Most are NOT aware of the politics and religious traditions of the day that led to the series of events chronicled in the gospels.A book aimed at the history buff more than the religious zealot.

What other book might you compare Killing Jesus to and why?

Killing Lincoln, Killing Kennedy<br/>Why: We know how it ends.

Which character – as performed by Bill O'Reilly – was your favorite?

It was more about how all the characters work together to form the context of the death of Jesus that is most compelling.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes.

Any additional comments?

Don't get the book to be inspired to believe nor to find some amazing nugget of faith. Get the book to better understand historical context; Jewish law, tradition, and historical politics; and how those things worked together to ensure the sacrifice.

Interesting Listening Experience

I truly enjoyed listening to the book. Bill O'Reilly has a distinctive speaking voice that is okay....but the story he told was brilliantly put together and I listened to this book in one day straight through beginning to end.

Another home run from O'Reilly

I don't care for O'Reilly on TV. Too much interrupting. As an author and narrator, he's great. As with his other "Killing" books (Kennedy and Lincoln), the author was able to put me in the action. Great book and a solid performance.

Entertaining but also O'Reilly's interpretations

It's not all history. O'Reilly makes several of his interpretations on the meaning written in the Bible in this book. One in particular that I didn't like was on Jesus's conversation in John 3. I think it's an entertaining, well written book, just with some of Bill's interpretations of meaning within the Bible. I'd still recommend listing to it if you're interested in Jesus.

Well researched

Would you listen to Killing Jesus again? Why?

I will listen to this book many times. For extreme fundamentalists, there may be some issues, none of which are significant. Mostly because the put the historical evidence in line with what the bible states. Also, most Christians feel the Jesus started his public life at 30, but this references starts his public life at 33. It also puts many of the events into some contect. For everyone else, this is an amazing historical reference to align the biblical life of Jesus on earth with the historical evidence available. In many respects it reminds me of Og Mandino's "The Christ Commission." On the other hand, having a historical alignment makes understanding the times and the events even more prolific.

What other book might you compare Killing Jesus to and why?

I'd suggest The Christ Commission by Og Mandino (regretfully not availablel here). Mr. Og was a pen pal of mine before his passing. We first communicated when I just wanted to thank him for my favorite book (The Greatest Miracle In The World). When I read The Christ Commission, it gave me a great understanding of the faith of those that followed Christ in the times immediately following his time physically here. I have strove to do the same ever since.

What does Bill O'Reilly bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Perhaps the inflections of the author, also a historian and public figure.

Fact and Fiction

Only someone who is interested in 1st century life... not the life of Jesus from a religious perspective.

How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?

O'Reilly makes a lot of assumptions theologically that ultimately negate the possibility (as outlined in his own faith's canon) for salvation and clearly views Jesus as a man who discovers he is God's son rather than Gods soul assuming the flesh of a mortal and subject to its pains. That aint too Catholic Billy.

Which scene was your favorite?

I do very much like the historical background of the time period. The politics, historical heroes forgotten in Jewish culture. He lays a great ground work for an understanding of the politics and time of Jesus. BUT, then again is not all that original either because all he is doing is rehashing Josephus in a more modern tone. Actually, the Jewish War is pretty compelling. and this book (in parts) is the abridged form of that book.

Was Killing Jesus worth the listening time?

sure...for background history. There is another book on audible that does a great job too...Life in 1st century Jerusalem...or some similar title. It did a better job for giving me a visual feel for the place. Again though, just pay attention to the history and cultural aspects. The religious stuff is all fodder for anyone who has spent a great measure of time studying with scholars and archeologists. For example, Asserting Mary Magdalene was a poor woman and was a prostitute cannot be backed up. We only know that she was cleansed of 'several demons'... that could have been insanity. Assuming history is not writing history. This is were Bill falls short. When he does not have Josephus or or a Roman scholar like Tacitus to fall back on to prove his outlooks... he is writing fiction. Shallow fiction. He treats Mary and Joseph, when Jesus is lost in the temple, as though they, at that point, do fully understand the magnitude of who their child is. This again is a far jump from what any real scholar of the bible would call legit. Its the worst part of the book... and its what the book strives to be about.

Any additional comments?

Stick to the facts you can back up Bill. You do a great job with documented history, and culture. Theologically... I am sorry man... you're a 'pin head.' Just my 2 cents and I am welcome to them.

Superficial

Bill O'Reilly claims to be writing history here, but he really isn't. What he presents is an awkwardly harmonized (and often lightly fictionalized) retelling of the Gospel story, decked out with tidbits gleaned from history and archaeology (for example, the kind of sandals that would have been worn by the Syrian mercenaries who carried out Herod's slaughter of the innocents).

The scholarship on display here is shallow at best. One key example is O'Reilly's discussion of the authorship of the Gospels. Matthew was written by the tax collector, he says; Mark by John Mark, Luke by the physician Luke, and John by the "beloved disciple," the brother of James son of Zebedee. O'Reilly claims that there is "growing agreement" among scholars as to these attributions. But he couldn't be more wrong, and you needn't go any further than the discussion of the same subject in the notes to the recent revision of the (Catholic) New American Bible to see how wrong he is.

As a harmonizer of the Gospels, O'Reilly leaves something to be desired. A prime example here is the cleansing of the Temple. In three Gospels, it appears at the end of Jesus' ministry, and helps precipitate the final crisis; in John, the last to be written, it appears at the beginning, and seems to be Jesus' way of launching his challenge. The solution, for O'Reilly? Jesus cleanses the Temple twice. This unlikely version of events is a direct result of his insistence on taking John not as a spiritual meditation on the meaning of Jesus, but as a literally true account by an eyewitness who, in O'Reilly's view, should be given "the last word" about chronology. This flies in the face of virtually every scholar who has written on the historicity of the Gospel of John in the last hundred years.

Some of his historical digressions are baffling. One of the longer sections in the book is an account of the reigns of Julius, Augustus, and Tiberius Caesar. O'Reilly is clearly in his element here, and relishes the stories of the financial, political, and sexual corruption of Rome. As fascinating as this material is, it feels like padding: really, in a book about Jesus, the point could have been made in a couple of paragraphs.

As a narrator, O'Reilly is brisk and engaging. He uses his years of experience hectoring people on TV to good purpose. But does he deliver what he claims to deliver in this book? Not by a long shot. He seems blissfully unaware of the massive amounts of scholarship that have focused on how to use the Gospels as historical sources - some of it by eminent Catholic scholars like the Jesuit priest John Meier - and chooses instead to take the Gospels at face value as historical accounts.

(I know that many people of faith will take issue with my opinion on this. But I think what I've said fairly characterizes recent scholarship on the Gospels. For an authoritative account, check out Bart Ehrman's lectures on "The Historical Jesus" in the Great Courses lecture series.)

If O'Reilly admitted that he was writing a faith-based account, I wouldn't argue with his approach. But he doesn't; he claims to be following the scholarship, and he isn't.

Someone once said to Alexander Pope, regarding his translation of The Iliad: "It is very pretty, Mr Pope, but you must not call it Homer." This is very pretty, Mr O'Reilly, but you must not call it history.

Why Didn't I Think Of This Ruse ?

Would you try another book from Bill O'Reilly and Martin Dugard and/or Bill O'Reilly?

I am the fool in this tale, as I have bought all of Bill's books, but have finally figured this out. I believe Bill gos on Wikipedia and looks up subject matter for his books, and merely copies and pastes the information, and calls it a book.

What other book might you compare Killing Jesus to and why?

The New Testament gives you all the facts, and I ask myself once again, " Why did I purchase this book"

What did you like about the performance? What did you dislike?

Bill has a pleasing voice, so he gets five stars for that alone.

Did Killing Jesus inspire you to do anything?

No

Any additional comments?

Bills books come out now, as soon as he thinks about an interesting subject matter, but you will NOT learn anything new in any of his books. Do not fall for this folks.

6 of 11 people found this review helpful

Sort by:

Overall

Performance

Story

Amazon Customer

02-03-15

Read Killing History too

Didn't seem that historical, so I read Killing History too. Shows how unhistorical this "history" is